Giants Rookies Find Familiarity in Camp

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — It was a crowded Giants rookie minicamp Friday, with more than 60 players — most of them undrafted free agents — swarming multiple practice fields. There was a lot of young, energetic football muscle parading back and forth, a throng that often ran the wrong way or looked lost in the middle of an assignment.

It was a day of N.F.L. innocence, like the first day of kindergarten except everyone weighed 200 to 350 pounds.

Still, in the midst of the naïveté, offensive tackle Justin Pugh and quarterback Ryan Nassib found familiarity in each other’s company. Pugh, a first-round pick last month, and Nassib, the first quarterback the team has drafted in several seasons, grew up about an hour apart in eastern Pennsylvania. They attended Syracuse University together, sharing many a huddle and numerous rides to and from upstate New York.

On the field Friday, they exchanged knowing glances even if Pugh ran to the line of scrimmage and lined up at right tackle, a position he has never played in his football career.

“I usually have your back side, now I have your front side,” Pugh, who played left tackle at Syracuse, told the right-handed Nassib.

“It’s all good,” Nassib told Pugh.

If they got confused in the midst of any of the drills, they will be able to study the playbook at home. They are now roommates in New Jersey.

“We’re going through a lot of the same things together,” Nassib said. “It’s good to have a friend around to do that.”

Pugh, for example, was recounting that he recently applied for his first credit card. Days before, he had read a comment from the Pro Bowl guard Chris Snee, who, when asked his advice for the new Giants lineman, responded: “Pugh, if you’re reading this, get a credit card.”

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Quarterback Ryan Nassib, left, and offensive lineman Justin Pugh, who were teammates at Syracuse, are now roommates in New Jersey.CreditJulio Cortez/Associated Press

Offensive linemen, not surprisingly, eat a lot, and part of the rookie initiative is to buy much of the food that the group eats at meetings and other gatherings. Pugh will be carrying a lot of pizza boxes.

“I was going to get a credit card anyway,” Pugh said with a smile. “But hearing what Snee said expedited the process.”

Nassib, meanwhile, awaits the famous prankster Eli Manning, a two-time Super Bowl M.V.P. and an all-world locker-room practical joker. Manning sometimes warms up by changing the operational language on a rookie’s cellphone from English to Japanese or French then branches out to hiding the rookie’s car keys (or his entire car). Itching powder in undergarments might follow, and purple hair from dye that Manning has placed in a helmet is a frequent outcome.

Like his roommate, Nassib has been warned. Even if Manning is not taking part in the rookie minicamp, he is still around, working out at the practice site.

Pugh trotting out to right tackle, where he is expected to compete with the 11-year veteran David Diehl, was maybe the most noteworthy event of the practices, since it emphasized that he would immediately contend for a starting job. But Nassib’s precision passing and strong arm were noticeable, too.

It did not hurt that the Syracuse connection extends beyond Pugh. Marcus Sales, a wide receiver with the Orange last year, was on the field, as well as Nick Provo, a tight end one year out of Syracuse.

Coach Tom Coughlin, a Syracuse graduate, praised Nassib’s performance. Unlike some of the other campers, Coughlin said, his newest quarterback did not seem overwhelmed by all the new plays and tactical jargon of the offensive system.

“He was poised and picked it up well,” Coughlin said. “As time went on, he got more comfortable, and guys started to respond. He did well.”

Kevin Gilbride, the offensive coordinator, conceded that having Pugh at his side may have eased the first-day jitters.

“Familiarity of any kind might have given him a psychological boost,” Gilbride said. “They look like they get along pretty well.”

A version of this article appears in print on , on Page D6 of the New York edition with the headline: Giants Rookies Find Familiarity in Camp. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe